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Sunday, January 22, 2017

Gold World News Flash

Gold World News Flash

Historic! Alex Jones Responds To Trump Inauguration Speech

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 11:30 PM PST

 Immediately after Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th POTUS. Alex Jones joined the 14 hour broadcast for a historic speech. The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free investigative journalists , researchers ,...

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Alex Jones Breaks Down Historic Trump Speech

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 09:30 PM PST

Alex Jones discusses Donald Trump's history making speech where he eviscerated Hillary Clinton. The media is lower than pond scum. The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free investigative journalists ,...

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Great Rotation and Gold

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 09:09 PM PST

SunshineProfits

ANONYMOUS - BREAKING NEWS! Confirmation for FEMA Camps, MARTIAL LAW and Gun Confiscation

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 09:00 PM PST

 Anonymous Updates presents to you 'a confirmation video containing the FEMA Camps, martial law and gun confiscation 2017.' The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free investigative journalists , researchers ,...

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How are Chinese citizens reacting to the Trump presidency?

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 07:30 PM PST

 Let's hear some reactions from China, where ordinary Chinese people are expressing their thoughts on the Trump presidency and the future of China-US relations. The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free...

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Raoul Pal Warns The Day Of Reckoning Looms For VIX Shorts: "Reminds Me Of Portfolio Insurance In 1987"

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 06:30 PM PST

ubmitted by Patrick Ceresna via Macrovoices.com,

 

In a podcast interview on MacroVoices, Macro Guru Raoul Pal makes some comments on some of the biggest imbalances in the markets today. 

He compares the VIX contango trade to the portfolio insurance problem that was blamed for the 1987 crash...

  • they don't realize the rate of change of the VIX can be so extraordinary that the losses can mount up massively and super quickly

Pal then goes on to discuss the record level of speculative long positions in the oil markets compares to the conditions in the summer of 2014 prior to the bear market decline

  • The other thing was speculative position in crude oil was all time high in fact if I took the trend going back from the early 80's it was seven standard deviations above that trend and well over three standard deviations maybe four standard deviations from the trend in the last 20 years or 15 years.
  • I've seen a similar situation with copper driven by China and a few other things where copper position is wildly extreme and so I start to think well too much reflation is priced into these things maybe there’s an interesting opportunity on the short side
  • What is interesting oil volatility has been coming lower. Look, I don't think it's going to get back to where it was in 2014 when it was trading below 20 but it has come down from a peak of 80, a kind of a real trading range of 50 down to 30. If it comes any lower the ability to buy options start to make sense because oil volatility can go to 80 can go to a 100

Full podcast:

Excerpts of the interview:

Erik:                One of the risk factors that we discussed last time was this crazy VIX contango trade where basically people are shorting VIX futures because each time they roll that contract forward they capture the contango by being short and they see it as a way to produce income. Of course, you know that's not just picking up nickels in front of a steamroller, that's pennies being pried out from under the steamroller and so far a big downdraft in equity prices has not happened which was the big risk that you saw there. You described how if there was a sudden downward move in equity prices it could really blow up in these guys' faces. Is that risk still in the system, is that trade still on or have people wised up and gotten out of it?

Raoul:             No, that trade still goes on to this day and it reminds me a lot of the portfolio insurance stuff around 1987 or some of the kind of spread trade Low Vol trades that happens around 1998 people go over their ski tips with this stuff. They think it's all manageable and they think that OK we can sell VIX and if we lose money on that, we'll use this as an opportunity to buy stock because we've been taking in premiums but they don't realize the rate of change of the VIX can be so extraordinary that the losses can mount up massively and super quickly.

So, I worry about that position. I worry about a whole world that sets up for low volatility when you've got a new administration that is almost unquantifiable. We don't know what kind of volatility should be under an administration like this but a relatively aggressive administration should create more volatility overall so at which case the generalized level of volatility should rise.

If the past 20 years of global historical data is anything to go by, that 'awakening' of uncertainty is very bad news...

Erik:                Well I’ll see if you want to grade me on the thoughts I have. The only real directional trade that I see right here is long the dollar index and I think we agree on that we've already discussed the reasons why.

Beyond that the things I'm looking at there, if I look at the term structure of crude oil. We've got a fairly steep contango for a few months but then we see backwardation in the belly of the curve. So apparently, we're not going to need storage after June or July or so it's going to be a non-issue those tanks are going to be empty. I'm not buying that story.

So I do see a curve steepener trade that is-- I actually just bought a bunch of spreads short June, long December. Just thinking that at that point there was backwardation in that segment of the curve I don't think that's going to stay in backwardation I think by the time June gets here we're going to be looking at contango again.

So that's one trade that I see the other one I'm kind of waiting for and I’m lining up quite a few dominoes here is I think that Trump is going to get tough with ISIS very quickly after entering office and I wouldn't be surprised if there's some kind of ultimatum, ISIS knock it off or else, and I think there's so much hysteria right now politically there's so many people with such polarized viewpoints that you could easily see a an overreaction, a massive upward spike in oil prices because a lot of paranoid people are convinced that Donald Trump is going to launch nuclear weapons on ISIS or something.

I don't think that'll actually happen. If there was a $25 up spike in oil prices from here I would look at that as a very very ripe shorting opportunity because I don't think prices can go $25 higher and stay there because the shale revolution will be restarted, the bakken will be relaunched and those prices will come back down.

So I don't want to bet on the up spike I'm not convinced it will happen if it does happen I'll definitely bet on the mean reversion. Frankly that's all I can really see at this point for trades.

Raoul:             So to add on about oil. Oil is interesting to me because if you remember I made a very public forecast on oil way back in 2015 I think it was, when I said look I think oil is going to fall to $30 dollars a barrel it was like at 110 at the time and luckily it got there these things don’t always work out that way but it did and the reason I had a lot of faith was twofold one the dollar was going up and I thought it would go much higher which obviously is the normal nature of oil prices so that helps that.

The other thing was speculative position in crude oil was all time high in fact if I took the trend going back from the early 80's it was seven standard deviations above that trend and well over three standard deviations maybe four standard deviations from the trend in the last 20 years or 15 years. So, the position was huge.

If I look at it now again, I'm looking again at my Bloomberg screen as we speak it's equal to where it was. So, it came, all the way back down, it's got all the way back up. So, the market is wildly gigantically bullish on crude oil and that is something that starts looking like an opportunity to me on the short side.

I get what you're saying about the price risk which is always the danger of shorting crude oil it's always a bit of a negative gamma trade. So it makes it a bit nervous but I still think that crude oil comes lower so I’m bullish in that.

I've seen a similar situation with copper driven by China and a few other things where copper position is wildly extreme and so I start to think well too much reflation is priced into these things maybe there’s an interesting opportunity on the short side.

Erik:                Yeah, I very much agree with that I want to be short equities here and I want to be short crude oil but I don't dare to touch either trade from the short side right now because there's been so much bullish hysteria in the equity market. I don't know what's going to happen to you know sell the inauguration. OK I've said sell quite a few times in the last few years and been wrong so I want to be short but-- emotionally I want to, I can't bring myself to do it because there's just been-- every time I say OK the market can't possibly go higher than this it ends up going higher.

In the case of crude oil, I'm convinced that this rally has played out from a fundamental standpoint. It’s that hysteria risk that if it happens it's a fantastic opportunity to go short. I would consider puts on crude oil here as a speculation that maybe they'll go lower. But I don't want be an outright futures here I'd rather be in puts on futures and have a very limited downside if Trump scares everybody.

If that happens – I don't think it's a real risk – I just think it's hysteria and look at there's actually been an increase in residency applications in Chile because there are people freaking out about Donald Trump so much that they want to be in the southern hemisphere for when he starts the nuclear war that's a fact. This is hysteria and until it settles down I don't want to be on the short side of the oil trade unless it's using options or something protected.

Raoul:             Yeah, I agree. What is interesting oil volatility has been coming lower. Look, I don't think it's going to get back to where it was in 2014 when it was trading below 20 but it has come down from a peak of 80, a kind of a real trading range of 50 down to 30. If it comes any lower the ability to buy options start to make sense because oil volatility can go to 80 can go to a 100 so maybe buying some puts on oil or you buy kind of out of the money calls out of the money puts If you've got the view that you have that there is a tail risk events of something that Trump administration will do to drive up the price of oil and that's possible don't forget that the economic policies is credibly pro oil in the U.S. right now with the new administration. So, it is in that economic interest to drive up the price of oil.

So yes, I can see that too. I love these kinds of puzzles. These are the kind of ones that get me up at night thinking wow, that’s interesting, you've got all of the reasons why the oil price should fall, all of the geopolitical reasons and business reasons why the U.S. wants a higher oil price so how does this play out what does that mean for us.

Pepe Escobar: Here's How The Trump Presidency Will Play Out

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 06:00 PM PST

Authored by Pepe Escobar via The Saker,

The Trump era starts now – with geopolitics and geoeconomics set for a series of imminent, unpredictable cliffhangers.

I have argued that Trump’s foreign policy guru Henry Kissinger’s strategy to deal with the formidable Eurasia integration trio – Russia, China and Iran – is a remixed Divide and Rule; seduce Russia away from its strategic partnership with China, while keep harassing the weakest link, Iran.

In fact that’s how it’s already playing out – as in the outbursts of selected members of Trump’s cabinet during their US Senate hearings. Factions of US Think Tankland, referring to Nixon’s China policy, which was designed by Kissinger, are also excited with the possibilities of containment regarding at least one of those powers “potentially arrayed against America”.

Kissinger and Dr. Zbig “Grand Chessboard” Brzezinski are the two foremost, self-described Western dalangs – puppet masters – in the geopolitical arena. In opposition to Kissinger, Obama’s foreign policy mentor Brzezinski, true to his Russophobia, proposes a Divide and Rule centered on seducing China.

Yet an influential New York business source, very close to the real, discreet Masters of the Universe, who correctly predicted Trump’s victory weeks before the fact, after examining my argument offered not only a scathing appraisal of those cherished dalangs; he volunteered to detail how the new normal was laid out by the Masters directly to Trump. Let’s call him “X”.

The non-stop China watch

“X” starts by doing something US deep state-connected regulars, who revere their idols, never dare to, at least in public;

“It is important not to attribute too much importance to either Kissinger or Brzezinski as they are merely fronts for those who make the decisions and it is their job to cloak the decisions with a patina of intellectuality. Their input means relatively nothing. I use their names on occasion as I cannot use the names of those who actually make the decisions.”

That’s the cue for “X” to detail the new normal;

“Trump was elected with the support of the Masters to tilt towards Russia. The Masters have their tools in the media and Congress maintaining a vilification campaign against Russia, and have their puppet Brzezinski also come out against Russia, stating ‘America’s global influence depends on cooperation with China’. The purpose is to threaten Russia to cooperate and place these chips on the negotiating table for Trump. In a traditional good cop-bad cop approach, Donald is portrayed as the good cop wanting good relations with Russia, and Congress, media, Brzezinski are the bad cops. This is to aid Trump in the negotiations with Russia as Putin sees the ‘precarious’ position of his friend and should be willing to make major concessions as the line goes.”

And that brings us to how Taiwan – and Japan – got into the mix;

“Donald shows the Russian tilt by talking to the Taiwanese, demonstrating that the shift is serious. But it was decided to throw Japan into the mix as a predator against US industry, with an attack on Toyota, thoroughly deserved. That moderated the position as the Masters became afraid that the perception of our building up Japan against China would be too much of a provocation.”

So expect China – as “not too much importance” Kissinger prescribed – to be under non-stop scrutiny;

“The Masters have decided to reindustrialize the United States and want to take jobs back from China. This is advisable from the Chinese viewpoint; for why should they sell their work to the US for a dollar that has no intrinsic value and get really nothing back for the work. China should have a car in every Chinese worker’s garage and they will become a larger producer of cars than the EU, US and Japan combined, and their own nation will keep their wealth in their own country.”

And why China over Russia?

“Russia in this sense being a natural resource country with a gigantic military industrial complex (the latter being the only reason she is secretly respected) is exempt from any tough trade talk as they hardly export anything but natural resources and military equipment. The Masters want jobs back from Mexico and Asia including Japan, Taiwan, etc., and you see this in Trump’s attack on Japan. The main underlying reason is that the US has lost control of the seas and cannot secure its military components during a major war. This is all that matters now and this is the giant story behind the scenes.”

In only a few words “X” details the reversal of an economic cycle;

“The Masters made money out of transfer of industry to Asia (Bain Capital specialized in this), and Wall Street made money from the lower interest rates on the recycled dollars from the trade deficits. But now, the issue is strategic; and they will make money on the return of industries scaling down their investments in Asia and returning them to the United States as we rebuild production here.”

“X” remains quite fond of Henry Ford’s business strategy; and that is the cue for him to address the crucial theme: national defense. According to “X”,

“Ford doubled the wages he paid and made more money than any other manufacturer. The reason was that a living wage where the mother can have many children on her husband’s wage was psychologically good for productivity in his car plants, and that his workers could then afford his cars. He thus recognized that in a society there must be a just distribution of wealth that his admirer Steve Jobs could not. Henry’s mass productivity was the wonder of the world and that was what won World War Two for the United States. Amazon does not contribute anything to national defense, being merely an internet marketing service based on computer programs, nor Google which merely organizes data better. None of this builds a better missile or submarine except in a marginal way.”

It’s the Pentagon, stupid

So yes; this all has to do with reorganizing the US military. “X” made a point to refer to a CNAS report I quoted in my initial column;

“It is very important for what is visible between the lines. And that is we are in deep trouble being technologically behind Russia by generations in weapons, which is a follow-up on the Brzezinski quote that we are no longer a global power.”

This is a thorough, wide-ranging analysis of how Russia has managed to organize the best armed forces in the world. And that does not even take into account the S-500 missile defense system, which is now being rolled out and arguably seals the entirety of Russian airspace. And the next generation – S-600? – will be even more powerful.

“X” does venture into deep state taboo territory, as in how Russia, over the past decade, has managed to leap far ahead of the US, “eclipsing it as the strongest military power”. But the game may be far from over – wishful thinking or otherwise;

“We hope Secretary of Defense James Mattis will understand this and that the Deputy Secretary of Defense has advanced technological skills, organizational ability and the foresight to understand that the weapons of World War Three are offensive and defensive missiles, and submarines, and not air power, tanks and aircraft carriers.”

A realist, “X” admits that the warmongering neocon/neoliberalcon status quo – represented by most US deep state factions – will never abandon the default posture of unremitting hostility towards Russia. But he prefers to focus on change;

“Let Tillerson reorganize the State Department along Exxon efficiencies. He may be worth something in that.  He and Mattis may be gutless but if you tell the truth to the Senate you may not be confirmed. So what they say means nothing. But notice this about Libya. The CIA had a goal of driving China out of Africa and so does AFRICOM. That was one of the secrets to our Libyan intervention.”

Not that it worked; NATO/AFRICOM turned Libya into a wasteland run by militias, and still China was not driven away from the rest of Africa.

“X” also admits, “Syria and Iran are red lines for Russia. So is the eastern Ukraine from the Dnieper.” He is fully aware Moscow will not allow any regime change gambit on Tehran. And he’s also aware that “China’s investments in Iranian oil and gas imply that China also will not permit Washington’s overthrow of the Iranian government.”

The going really gets tough when it comes to NATO; “X” is convinced Russia “will invade Romania and Poland if those missiles are not taken out of Romania and the missile commitment to Poland rescinded. The issue is not the worthless defensive missiles of the United States but the substitutability of offensive nuclear missiles in these silos. Russia will not tolerate this risk.  These are not subject to negotiation.”

In contrast to the “perpetual threat” perpetual propaganda by the US War Party, Moscow focuses on actual facts on the ground since the 1990s; the break up of historic Slavic ally Serbia; Warsaw Pact nations and even former USSR republics annexed by NATO, not to mention attempts to also include Georgia and Ukraine; US deployment of color revolutions; the “Assad must go “ fiasco, as in regime change forced on Syria even including the weaponizing of Salafi-jihadis; economic sanctions, an oil price war and raids on the ruble; and non-stop NATO harassment.

“X”, fully aware of the facts, adds, “Russia has always wanted peace. But they are not going to play a game with the Masters of the Universe that has Trump as the good guy and the Congress, CIA, etc. as the bad guy as a negotiating ploy. That is how they see it. They do not regard this circus as real.”

The circus may be just an illusion. Or wayang – Balinese puppet theatre – as I suggested. “X” advances a crisp interpretation of the shadow play ahead from Moscow’s point of view, allowing “several months to see if Putin can work out a detente with Trump that essentially creates an autonomous eastern Ukraine, a peace treaty in Syria with Assad in place, and a withdrawal of NATO forces back to their line of defense under Ronald Reagan.”

Who will prevail; the Masters, or the deep state? Brace for impact.

The Inauguration of Donald Trump by VICE News

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 05:30 PM PST

Finally we will get rid of satanic communist ideologies like free healthcare, education , income equality globalism and high taxes.America will be great again The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free investigative...

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Doug Casey Warns "Every American Needs To Be Concerned Right Now"

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 05:00 PM PST

Authored by Doug Casey via InternationalMan.com,

Making The Chicken Run, Part 1

“Making the chicken run” is what Rhodesians used to say about neighbors who packed up and got out during the ’60s and ’70s, before the place became Zimbabwe. It was considered “unpatriotic” to leave Rhodesia. But it was genuinely idiotic not to.

I’ve written many times about the importance of internationalizing your assets, your mode of living, and your way of thinking. I suspect most readers have treated those articles as they might a travelogue to some distant and exotic land: interesting fodder for cocktail party chatter, but basically academic and of little immediate personal relevance.

I’m directing these comments toward the U.S. mainly because that’s where the problem is most acute, but they’re applicable to most countries.

Now, in 2017, the U.S. is in real trouble. Not as bad as Rhodesia 40 years ago—and definitely a different kind of trouble—but plenty serious. For many years, it’s been obvious that the country was eventually going to hit the wall, and now the inevitable is rapidly becoming imminent.

What do I mean by that? There’s plenty of reason to be concerned about things financial and economic. But I personally believe we haven't been bearish enough on the eventual social and political fallout from the Greater Depression. Nothing is certain, but the odds are high that the U.S. is going into a time of troubles at least as bad as any experienced in any advanced country in the last century.

I hate saying things like that, if only because it sounds outrageous and inflammatory and can create a credibility gap. It invites arguments with people, and although I enjoy discussion, I dislike arguing.

It strikes most people as outrageous because the long-running post-WWII boom has been punctuated only by brief recessions. After 70 years, why should it ever end? The thought of a nasty end certainly runs counter to the experience of almost everyone now alive—including myself—and our personal experience is what we tend to trust most. But it seems to me we're very close to a tipping point. Ice stays ice even while it’s being warmed—until the temperature goes over 32° F, where it changes very quickly into something very different.

First, the Economy

That point—economic bankruptcy accompanied by financial chaos—is quickly approaching for the U.S. government. With deficits over a trillion dollars per year for as far as the eye can see, the U.S. Treasury will very soon be unable to roll over its maturing debt at anything near current interest rates. The only reliable buyer will be the Federal Reserve, which can buy only by creating new dollars.

Within the next 24 months, the dollar is likely to start losing value rapidly and noticeably. Foreigners, who own over 6 trillion of them (including T-bills and other IOUs), will start panicking to dump them. So will Americans. The dollar bond market, today worth $40 trillion, will be devastated by much higher interest rates, a rapidly depreciating dollar, and an epidemic of defaults.

And that will be just the start of the trouble. Since the U.S. property market floats on a sea of debt (and is easy to tax), it’s also going to be hit very hard, again, this time by stifling mortgage rates. The next step is up for interest rates. Forget about property owners paying their existing mortgages; many won’t be able to pay their taxes and utilities, and maintenance will be out of the question.

The pain will spread. Insurance companies are invested mostly in bonds and real estate; many will go bankrupt. The same is true of most pension funds. If the stock market doesn’t collapse, it will only be because money is looking for a place to hide from inflation. The payout for Social Security will drop significantly in real terms, if not in dollars. The standard of living of most Americans will fall.

This rough sequence of events has happened in many countries in recent decades, and they’ve survived the tough times. But it has the potential, at least in relative terms, to be more serious in the U.S. than it was in Argentina, Brazil, Serbia, Russia, Mozambique, or Zimbabwe for two main reasons.

First, many people in those countries knew they couldn’t trust their government and acted accordingly, even in contravention of the law, by accumulating assets elsewhere. So, there was a significant pool of capital available for rebuilding. Americans, on the other hand, tend to be much more insular, law-abiding, and trusting in their government. When they lose their U.S. assets, they'll have lost everything.

Second, those societies were significantly more rural than the U.S. is today. As in the America of 100 years ago, much of the population lived quite close to the land and had practical skills and habits that helped them get through the tough times. For 21st-century Americans, it's a different story. Shortages and disorder are going to hit commuters who live in suburbs, and urban dwellers who think milk appears in cartons magically, like a ton of bricks.

One thing you can absolutely count on is that everyone will look to the government to “do something.” Americans really do think governments control the way the world works. Another certainty is that the U.S. government will “step in” massively, because everyone will want them to, and the politicians themselves believe they should. This will greatly aggravate the crisis and make it last much longer than necessary.

Then It Gets Serious

But that’s just over the short run. The long run is much more serious because the next chapter of the Greater Depression has every chance of radically, and at least semi-permanently, overturning the basic character of American life. Ice turned to water—suddenly and unexpectedly—in Russia in 1918, Germany in 1933, China in 1949, Vietnam in 1954, Cambodia in 1975, and Rwanda in 1995. Those are just the first examples that come to mind. There are scores more.

The economic events I’ve outlined are going to mean serious hardship and unpleasantness for many people. But that doesn't concern me nearly as much as the social and political reaction.

*  *  *

Doug says we're on the edge of a genuine precipice. The economy is crumbling… and there's a good chance things will only get worse. This is exactly why Doug and his team put together a time-sensitive video explaining how it could all go down. A financial shock far greater than 2008 could strike America during Trump's first 100 days in office. It could either wipe out a big part of your savings... or be the fortune-building opportunity of a lifetime. Click here to watch it now.

White House Spokesman Slams Media Over "Crowd Size Comparisons" In Bizarre First Briefing

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 03:50 PM PST

In a bizarre first briefing, White House press secretary Sean Spicer on Saturday unloaded a blistering attack on the media and accused it of false reporting about the otherwise irrelevant question of why Trump's inauguration crowd was visibly smaller than that of Obama's.

Spicer used up virtually all the time in his first official appearance in the Press Briefing Room to denounce news organizations' focus on the inaugural crowd size, saying "these attempts to lessen the enthusiasm of the inauguration are shameful and wrong."

We wouldn't necessarily use those words: silly should suffice since if Trump really wanted to "defend" why fewer people attended his inauguration, he can simply say many more of his supporters are employed and had to be at work on Friday, than during either Obama's 2009 or 2013 inauguration events.

However, the press secretary decided that hyperbole is the better part of valor and said "This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period, both in person and around the world"

Spicer made the allegation despite photographs of the event clearly showed that the Mall was not full in the sections Spicer described, with dwindling-to-nonexistent crowds near the Smithsonian Institution Building and west toward the Washington Monument. There was also sparse attendance along the parade route from the Capitol to the White House. He alleged that some photos of the inauguration were "intentionally framed in a way" that minimized the crowd, without providing examples or evidence.

No official agency provides estimates of the size of gatherings on the Mall. But photos taken from the same vantage point at about the same time of day show that the crowds were far smaller than for President Barack Obama's first inauguration, which Washington city officials estimated at 1.8 million people.

 

Ultimately, the whole press briefing episode had a surreal undertone, one in which Trump, via his speaker, appears to continue to troll the press, now in the White House.

As a seemingly perturbed NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen summarized it "Wow. Sean Spicer walked to the podium. Unloaded on the media for bias. Accused reporters of dishonesty. Walked off without taking questions."

The reaction among the rest of the press was similar.

Spicer took no questions from reporters and he did not say specifically how many people the White House believes attended the inauguration. He said three large sections of the Mall that each held at least 200,000 people were "full when the president took the oath of office."

Earlier on Saturday, in remarks at CIA headquarters in Langley, Trump said that from his vantage point at the podium, "it looked like a million, million and a half people. They showed a field where there were practically nobody standing there, and they said Donald Trump did not draw well." Trump also said parts of the National Mall "all the way back to the Washington Monument" were "packed."

Quoted by Bloomberg, former White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said on Twitter after Spicer's remarks that "This is called a statement you're told to make by the president. And you know the president is watching."

He is indeed, and what he is seeing is that he once again is controlling the media narrative, which is focusing on a very immaterial and arbitrary issue, instead of spending time on investigative work and reporting on far more serious issues relating to Trump's new administration.

Full clip below.

Madonna Threatened To Blow Up White House Because of Trump

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 03:30 PM PST

 Madonna's full speech from the Women's March On Washington to protest Donald Trump's and Republican's misogyny. The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free investigative journalists , researchers , Whistelblowers ,...

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Why A Bitcoin ETF May Not Be Coming Any Time Soon

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 03:25 PM PST

When it comes to the future of bitcoin, the "holy grail" has emerged as becoming the first to have a bitcoin ETF approved by the SEC.

Over three years ago, in 2013, the company of the Winklevoss twins, Cameron and Tyler, Winklevoss Capital Management LLC, launched the first proposed bitcoin ETF, the Winklevoss Investment Trust, looking to trade on the HFT-dominated BATS exchange. The SEC is expected to make a decision on it by March. A second group, SolidX Partners followed last July seeking SEC approval for its bitcoin ETF, SolidX Bitcoin Trust, which also would be listed on the NYSE.

Then on Friday, Grayscale Investments, a unit of Barry Silbert's Digital Currency Group filed with the SEC to list its own Bitcoin Investment Trust on the New York Stock Exchange: as with the previous two attempts, the fund hopes to get SEC approval to expand the audience for the virtual currency. Initially, the trust will seek to launch with $500 million, the filing said, though the target is subject to change. At Dec. 31, it had about 1.8 million shares outstanding. Based on a net asset value of $89.39 a share, its assets under management totaled $164.2 million.

As the WSJ notes, "Grayscale's Bitcoin Investment Trust, first launched in 2013, already trades on OTC Markets Group Inc.'s over-the-counter exchange, OTCQX. With the new filing if approved, the trust would operate as a traditional ETF, meaning that specialized traders would create and retire shares based on demand."

Two Wall Street firms, KCG Holdings Inc. and Wedbush Securities Inc., are in discussions to serve as authorized participants, according to the filing. Additionally, the fund's trustee will be Delaware Trust Co., and the transfer agent will be Bank of New York Mellon Corp., based on the filing.

The goal of a bitcoin-based ETF is to offer an product that would be easier for investors to access and would mute at least some of bitcoin's volatility, although it would hardly eliminate all of it, which would still make it a riskier investment than most other ETFs.

More importantly, approval "could prove an early test for how an SEC run by a Donald Trump appointee will greet innovations that may raise investor-protection or other market-structure issues." Furthermore, the benefits of being first on a major exchange could be big, assuming that bitcoin does manage to establish itself as a viable asset class. The SPDR Gold Shares ETF launched Nov. 18, 2004, has $31 billion in assets. The iShares Gold Trust ETF launched Jan. 21, 2005, has $7.7 billion in assets. Gold, a commodity not backed by any particular government, appeals to investors for some of the same reasons as bitcoin... even if many physical hard-core "gold-stacker" fans mock both the concept of a paper gold representing their physical holdings, while relentlessly ridiculing the idea that "digital money" contained in a server somewhere, is in any way safe (following recent dramatic breaches of a Chinese bitcoin exchange, they have a point).

Earlier this month, Needham analyst Spencer Bogart wrote that "it appears there is significant pent-up demand from the investment public for such a vehicle" although he conceded that "the probability of one being approved in 2017 was very low, expecting the SEC could be cautious about such a risky asset."

Indeed, as one of the lawyers who helped craft the application for what would be the first-ever bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) told Coindesk, he is doubtful the SEC will approve such a request any time in the near future. The critique, courtesy of former Gemini general counsel David Brill, is particularly relevant as his old employer's last and final deadline to receive approval for the experimental product is on 11th March.

Though Brill is quick to point out he is a "proponent" of the creation of bitcoin ETFs and pro-bitcoin regulation more broadly, the prognosis does not bode well for its success. In conversation with CoinDesk, Brill explained that he believes factors such as China's impact on the price of bitcoin make an approval unlikely.

Specifically, he said that "It seems unlikely, among all the other reasons, that the commission is going to want to move forward with a product where the major trading is done on an exchanges that may not be following our AML guidelines." In other words, China's domination of bitcoin trading - as much as 98% of recent bitcoin transactions took place in China - would likely force the SEC to deny any of the bitcoin ETF applications.

Blame China: "a career lawyer for 20 years, Brill worked at Thompson Financial from 2003 through 2010, when it acquired Reuters. Prior to departing Gemini last year, Brill worked as the New York-based exchange's general council, where he said he helped create the legal infrastructure of the exchange and craft a number of responses to amendments to its S1 filing."

Though Brill does believe that that a bitcoin ETF will eventually be allowed to do business on a major stock exchange, he said the SEC will be unlikely to do so while as much as 95% of all bitcoin transactions are carried out in China.

 

That, coupled with the China government's recent crackdown on cryptocurrency exchanges and anti-money laundering practices, makes for an even less likely approval, he said.

"It's more that the overwhelming majority of trading is not being done in the US, and being done in an area where the rules and regulations are not consistent with the rules here," said Brill.

According to Brill, one of the big hopes for further acceptance and advancement of bitcoin is none other than Donald Trump. Speaking shortly before Donald Trump's inauguration as President, Brill said he is "cautiously optimistic about a more promising environment for bitcoin companies in the future."

From a strictly local business perspective, he predicted Trump would likely take a pro-bitcoin stance. However, considering concerns about a possible "trade war" with China following Trump's expected policies, Brill said the predominance of bitcoin trading in the nation could be a hindrance.  He concluded: "I want to try to see what approaches might work to make it easier for bitcoin companies to expand across the US. Because right now, it is extremely difficult because every state has something different that they want."

Ultimately, bitcoin investors may have to make do without a bitcoin ETF for a while, especially if as some suspect, not only Chinese traders, but local HFTs have taken over trading of the extremely volatile product. Still, that may be a good thing: failing to get ETF approval will simply keep bitcoin extremely volatile, which is also why it has become the darling asset of a subset of traders starved for volatility in a world where central banks have eliminated virtually any daily gyrations from the equity class. As such, we would expect bitcoin vol to only grow, not decline, in the process making the attainment of the bitcoin "holy grail" that much more improbable.

Trumphoria -- Max Keiser

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 03:00 PM PST

Max and Stacy discuss Obama and Clinton loyalists grappling with recession. Max continues his interview with Reggie Middleton of BoomBustBlog.com about the T'rash to follow Trumphoria. The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists ,...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit http://financearmageddon.blogspot.com http://www.figanews.com for full links, other content, and more! ]]

LIVE Stream: President Donald Trump Delivers Remarks at CIA Headquarters (1/21/2017)

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 02:00 PM PST

President Trump Delivers Remarks at CIA Headquarters President Trump pays a visit to CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia. The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free investigative journalists , researchers ,...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit http://financearmageddon.blogspot.com http://www.figanews.com for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Time for Crude Oil Price Drop below $50?

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 01:59 PM PST

Trading position (short-term; our opinion): Short positions (with a stop-loss order at $56.45 and an initial downside target at $45.81) are justified from the risk/reward perspective. On Wednesday, crude oil lost 2.57% after the head of the IEA warned of a significant increase in U.S. shale output as OPEC and non-OPEC producers cut output. This news negatively affected the investors' sentiment and pushed the black gold under important support levels. What does it mean for light crude?

NO WAY! ASHLEY JUDD AND MICHAEL MOORE - 'OUR PUSSIES AREN'T FOR GRABBING!!!' AT WOMEN'S MARCH

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 01:53 PM PST

1/21/2017 NO WAY! ASHLEY JUDD AND MICHAEL MOORE - 'OUR PUSSIES AREN'T FOR GRABBING!' AT WOMEN'S MARCH - OVER 125K PPL The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries , free investigative journalists , researchers , Whistelblowers ,...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit http://financearmageddon.blogspot.com http://www.figanews.com for full links, other content, and more! ]]

This One Chart Shows Why The Donald May Be Inheriting A Sinking Ship

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 01:00 PM PST

The trut is Trump cannot make America great again, if the Federal Reserve doesn't want it themselves. Trump's whole cabinet can have an average I.Q. above 160 and it won't make a bit of difference. The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts ,...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit http://financearmageddon.blogspot.com http://www.figanews.com for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Buffet Of Trump Protesters Fully Triggered

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 12:30 PM PST

This is what vaccines have done to the population... mass Down syndrome Brain washed misinformed uneducated millennials. Leave the USA if you don't like it or it's president you wimps! The Financial Armageddon Economic Collapse Blog tracks trends and forecasts , futurists , visionaries...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit http://financearmageddon.blogspot.com http://www.figanews.com for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Gold price suppression is vital to govt. currencies but will fail, Turk says

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 07:17 AM PST

10:16a ET Saturday, January 21, 2017

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

In an interview with Wealth Research Group, GoldMoney founder and GATA consultant James Turk explains why gold price suppression is essential to the defense of government-issued currencies and why the current suppression scheme seems likely to fail soon. Turk credits GATA for exposing the scheme worldwide. The interview is a half hour long and can be heard at You Tube here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ij4c__Qnnio&t=2s

CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.
CPowell@GATA.org


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Breaking News And Best Of The Web

Posted: 21 Jan 2017 01:37 AM PST

US stocks up, gold and silver near multi-week high. Protesters and police face off at Trump inauguration. Brexit process begins. Earnings season starting well for banks and miners. Global debt continues to soar, especially in China. Fake news debate rages. Trump and Merkel trade insults.   Best Of The Web Stock market indicators: S&P 500 […]

The post Breaking News And Best Of The Web appeared first on DollarCollapse.com.

Top Ten Videos — January 21

Posted: 20 Jan 2017 04:01 PM PST

Nomi Prins on how central banks are screwing up. Russell Napier and Andy Hoffman on gold’s bright future. Steve Keen on global economic shockwaves.                    

The post Top Ten Videos — January 21 appeared first on DollarCollapse.com.
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